FASE 2018

21st International Conference on Fundamental Approaches to Software Engineering (FASE)

FASE is concerned with the foundations on which software engineering is built. Submissions should make novel contributions to making software engineering a more mature and soundly-based discipline. Contributions should be supported by appropriate arguments and validation. Contributions that combine the development of conceptual and methodological advances with their formal foundations and tool support are particularly encouraged. We welcome contributions on all such fundamental approaches, including:

Software engineering as an engineering discipline, including its interaction with and impact on society and economics;

Important dates and submission

FASE 2018 will use a double-blind review process for all the three categories of papers, and will adhere to the same policy as that adopted by ICSE 2018. Therefore, in your submission, omit your names and institutions; refer to your prior work in the third person, just as you refer to prior work by others; do not include acknowledgements that might identify you. For further details on double-blind review and double-blind submission, please see ICSE's instructions.

FASE 2018 will not have a rebuttal phase.

FASE paper categories

Research papers clearly identify and justify a principled advance to the fundamentals of software engineering. Papers should clearly articulate their contribution, and provide sufficient evidence for the validity and applicability of the proposed approach. Research papers that combine the development of conceptual and methodological advances with their formal foundations and tool support are particularly encouraged. Research papers can have a maximum of 15 pp (excluding bibliography of max 2 pp).

Regular tool papers present a new tool, a new tool component, or novel extensions to an existing tool. They should provide a short description of the theoretical foundations with relevant citations, and emphasize the design and implementation concerns, including software architecture . A regular tool paper should give a clear account of the tool's functionality, discuss the tool's practical capabilities with reference to the type and size of problems it can handle, describe experience with realistic case studies, and where applicable, provide a rigorous experimental evaluation. Papers that present extensions to existing tools should clearly focus on the improvements or extensions with respect to previously published versions of the tool, preferably substantiated by data on enhancements in terms of resources and capabilities. Authors are strongly encouraged to make their tools publicly available (in the final version of an accepted paper), preferably on the web; links to tool repositories or other supplementary material may be hidden in the submission version of a paper, if these links would otherwise endanger the anonymity of the authors. But no extra efforts are expected to disguise the identity of a tool (e.g. renaming the presented tool, moving the tool to another repository). Just reference the tool in your submission in a way that leaves it open whether the submitted tool (or extension, demonstration, etc.) paper has been submitted by the original developers of the tool or a new group of developers or users (if possible). Regular tool papers can have a maximum of 15 pp (excluding bibliography of max 2 pp).

Tool demonstration papers focus on the usage aspects of tools. As with regular tool papers, authors are strongly encouraged to make their tools publicly available, preferably on the web. Theoretical foundations and experimental evaluation are not required, however, a motivation as to why the tool is interesting and significant should be provided. Tool demonstration papers can have a maximum of 6 pp (including bibliography). They should have an appendix of up to 6 additional pages with details on the actual demonstration.

Special issue

A Special Issue of the Springer Journal Formal Aspects of Computing (FAC) will be associated with FASE'18. Authors of the best papers that fall within FAC's scope will be invited to submit significantly extended papers for journal review. A special issue of the Springer Journal Software Tools for Technology Transfer (STTT) will also be associated with FASE'18, and authors of the best papers that fall within STTT's scope will be invited to submit significantly extended papers for journal review.